There are several reasons a web page can seem to "break" with AdBlock on and look or work fine with AdBlock off. Almost always it's a filter list or custom filter at fault rather than AdBlock itself. Here are the things we look for.


Images are missing

This is most likely fallout from an all-out war between one particularly nasty advertising network and the folks who maintain EasyList. We have more information and a workaround that should help.


You're required to disable AdBlock before you can read or view content

We have some workarounds for this!


You tried to manually block something on the page

You might have accidentally blocked something the web page needs to work properly. Here's how to fix an accidental block.


A custom filter or filter list is breaking the page

AdBlock reads lists of ad filters and any custom filters you create to know what to block. One of the lists, or perhaps even a custom filter you created, is probably blocking something it shouldn't.


Note: If the option to log in to a website using a social media account is missing, check to see whether you have enabled the Fanboy's Annoyances or Antisocial filter list.


We don't maintain the filter lists or any custom filters you may be using. The instructions below will help you find the custom filter or filter list that's causing the trouble and report it to the right people to have it fixed. If the culprit is a custom filter, this will help you isolate it so that you can fix or remove it.


Perform the following steps in order. Only continue to the next step if the problem isn't fixed. Remember to reload the page where you're seeing the issue each time you make a change to the filter lists or custom filters.


Part 1: Make sure your filter lists are up-to-date

  1. Click the AdBlock button and select Options.
  2. On the FILTER LISTS tab, click update now.
  3. Reload the page where you're seeing the problem.
Is the problem gone? Great! You just had an old filter list.
If the problem is still there, keep going.

Part 2: Make sure the bad filter isn't a custom filter you added yourself

  1. On the CUSTOMIZE tab next to "Manually edit your filters," click Edit.
  2. Copy everything in the custom filters box into a text file for safekeeping.
  3. Delete everything in the box and click Save.
  4. Reload the page in question.
Is the problem gone? Great! One of your custom filters isn't working. Put them back one at a time until you find the bad one. Then don't use the bad one. :)
If the problem is still there, keep going.

Part 3: If your filter lists are up-to-date and your custom filters are fine, one of the lists contains a bad filter

  1. Disable all the lists on the FILTER LISTS tab  and reload the page where you’re seeing the problem. 
  2. If the problem goes away, re-enable the first filter list. Wait for AdBlock to fetch the list, then reload the problem page.
  3. Keep doing that until you find the list that makes the problem come back.


If it's EasyList or a language-specific filter list, please report it to the list maintainers. You can find the contact information in our Knowledge Base.


Here are some tips to help them help you: 

  1. Click the New Topic button on the Report incorrectly removed content page of the EasyList forum or the list maintainer's preferred contact location.
  2. Name your topic for the site where the issue is occurring.
    Note: If the site contains adult content, please include "NSFW" ("not safe for work") in the topic subject!
  3. Be sure to include your browser and version and which version of AdBlock you have.
  4. Provide a link to the page where the issue is occurring.
  5. Provide a screenshot if you can. To include a screenshot in your post:
    1. Upload your screenshot to Imgur.com or a similar picture-sharing site.
    2. Get the "share" URL of the uploaded file.
    3. In the EasyList post, include this line: [img]URL-TO-YOUR-PICTURE-FILE[/img]


If the issue you ran into is that social media content or social media buttons you need to see are missing, and disabling the Fanboy's Annoyances list fixes it, just leave that list disabled.


Another extension is breaking the page or interfering with AdBlock

This is rare, but it can happen. If unchecking all the filter lists did not fix the problem, try the same thing with your browser extensions. Disable all of them, then re-enable the extensions one by one, reloading the problem page after each. Which extension causes the problem to happen again?


If you don't need the extension, remove it. Otherwise, report this to the extension developers. You can usually find their contact information with the extension's listing in the extension store or gallery.


You're using Safari content blocking

If you're using Safari on either the desktop or a mobile device, we have some suggestions.


If all else fails

If the problem is still there after all of the above, reboot your computer. Seriously. This solves 95% of all known computer problems.


If even that doesn't help, uninstall and reinstall AdBlock. (Be sure to copy any custom filters to a text file for safekeeping first.)


If you've tried all of these suggestions and you're still seeing the problem, please report it to us and we'll do our best to help!